The Hiccup Way
by hiddenkindzero
Summary: Hiccups different, and that's not a good thing on Berk. On Berk, things are done one way, the Viking way, but thanks to a certain incident when Hiccup was younger, he finds out that the Viking way doesn't exactly apply to him. Especially when he learns that, he doesn't want to kill dragons. He wants to befriend them.
1. Chapter 1

**An: Just a quick key for future parts of the story**

"" = speaking

'' = thinking

 ** _""_** = dragon talk (This isn't important until way later in the story. And no, Hiccup can't talk to dragons)

* * *

A small, seven year old boy walked along the dirt paths that belonged to the place he called home. Berk was a large island, covered in trees, mountains and Vikings. They had a ... small pest problem in the form of giant fire breathing lizards, but nothing's perfect.

The boy came to a stop as he spotted five other kids his age. A girl with blond hair tied up in pig tails, a boy with long blond hair that reached his waist, a girl that looked almost perfectly like the boy, except her long hair was in braids, a rather large boy with puffy cheeks, and a slightly buff boy with black hair and a sleeveless shirt.

The boy groaned, and moved to take a detour, but was too late.

"Hey useless!"

The boy dubbed 'useless' scowled, but immediately cut out the expression as his cousin got closer.

"Hi snotbrains"

"Its Snotlout" The buff boy crossed his arms.

"Sorry sorry! You know me, always mixing up names" The boy laughed nervously, as the other kids started walking towards him.

"You know Hiccup, I'm starting to think your making fun of me"

"Gee, What gave you that idea?" Hiccup asked sarcastically.

"You know what?! I think I need to teach you a lesson!" Snotlout punched his palm with his fist threateningly.

"Guy -" the large boy with puffy cheeks was cut off by the twins.

"We're beating up Hiccup again? Awesome!" The girl yelled.

"Can we blow him up this time?" The boy asked.

"Uh let's not" Hiccup started to back away "After all, if you blow me up now, then you won't be able to blow me up later" He laughed nervously.

"You know Ruffnut, he has a point"

"Shut up Tuffnut!" Snotlout barked.

Hiccup took Snotlout's lack of attention as an opportunity and ran.

He didn't get very far. It lasted exactly five seconds before he tripped over his own foot.

A sound of disgust reached his ears, and he spared a glance backwards to see Astrid, the girl with pig tails, glare at him the same way his father did when he was embarrassed with the boy, and walk away. Not bothering to help him with his fate.

Hiccup's arm was grabbed, and he was hoisted from the ground. Snotlout twisted the kids arm behind his back and said "Not so fast Hiccup, I have an idea"

"Does it hurt?" Hiccup grunted.

"Does what hurt?"

"Never mind"

"Oh, Hey! What's the idea" Tuffnut asked.

"We're taking Hiccup" Snotlout grabbed Hiccups other arm and started guiding him to the edge of the village "Dragon hunting!"

"Ooo" The twins sang.

"That sounds awesome" Ruffnut said in awe.

Hiccup struggled, hoping to see Fishlegs, the voice of reason among the kids. He deflated, realizing that the pugdy boy had left him as well.

"Guys, I'd rather not"

"What's wrong Hiccup? Scared?"

Hiccup continued to struggle as Snotlout pushed him into the forest surrounding the village.

"Scared? Of giant fire breathing dragons? Of course I'm scared!" Hiccup yelled.

Snotlout laughed.

Hiccup continued to struggle in vain as Snotlout led him and the group deeper and deeper into the forest.

After hours of walking, Hiccups feet started to ache. Suddenly, a low growl filled the forest.

"Tuffnut, please tell me that was your stomach" Hiccup squeaked.

"Uh, that was definitely not my stomach"

"Well it wasn't mine" Snotlout said.

"Wasn't mine either" Ruffnut said.

"Hiccup?"

"Nope. Which begs the question, whose stomach was that?"

Hiccup's question was answered as the tall pine tree beside him was forced down. A huge dragon with blue and yellow scales, a wide flat head, and four horns blocked there path.

"Its a Monstrous Nightmare!" Hiccup screamed.

The dragon walked forward. Angry piercing amber eyes bore into the group as they started to back away.

The dragon eyed the group of young Vikings dangerously, before rearing its head back, and roaring as loud as it could into the sky.

Terrified for himself, Snotlout pushed Hiccup into the ground in front of him and ran, racing after the twins who had already started to sprint away.

The dragon howled angrily, and jumped over Hiccup, landing where Snotlout had previously been standing. The dragon roared again, before turning around and glaring at Hiccup who was shuffling backwards on the ground.

Realizing that he was alone, and the only way back to the village was guarded by a Monstrous Nightmare, Hiccup quickly spun around and kicked off the ground, attempting to outrun the beast.

Hiccup jumped over a log and ducked right, into the trees. His feet kicked the dirt violently as he dodged roots and low hanging branches, and his chest heaved with adrenaline.

Light around the forest slowly but surely started to dwindle. Snotlout had kept them out too long, and now the sun was setting, and Hiccup was paying for it.

"Why do the gods hate me?!" Hiccup yelled as the Monstrous Nightmare ignited itself, lighting its whole body a flame.

On the bright side, he could see better at least.

Looking ahead, Hiccup realized he had yet another log in his path. The piece of wood was much larger though, and he would have to climb it first before jumping off.

Hiccup did just that. As he climbed on top of the log, the flames illuminating the forest dulled, and the sound of the Monstrous Nightmare following him receded.

With the sudden darkness, Hiccup didn't see the four foot drop as he jumped off the log.

For a few short seconds, Hiccup flew, or rather, he fell through the air.

Hiccups body collided with something warm and scaly hanging from the trees in midair. The two masses rolled in the air, and Hiccup heard a snap as his arm met the ground. Searing pain erupted in his left arm and he screamed.

Tears welled up in his eyes as he struggled to get up.

"Grrrr"

Hiccup froze as a low growl erupted around him. Biting his lips, Hiccup blinked the tears away and looked around. In the dark, Hiccup couldn't see anything.

Finally, Hiccup stood up.

The growl didn't let up as Hiccup backpedaled. He was in clearing. The ground beneath him smelt like burnt rock, and trees surrounded him.

Just as he was about to enter into the trees, Hiccup's back hit warm soft scales with a thud.

Turning around, Hiccups green eyes met a similar pair. Wide green eyes stared into his own, and before he could process the sight, the owner of the eyes pushed and pinned him to the ground, a deep growl emitting from its throat.

Hiccup screamed in pain as a large black paw pushed his broken arm into the dirt.

Alarmed by the sound of pain, the dragon glanced down at Hiccup, and seeing the broken arm moved its paw to Hiccups chest instead making sure the boy stayed pinned.

The pain in Hiccups arm dulled, and the boy couldn't help but look the dragon in its eyes.

A sudden warmness surrounded Hiccup as the dragon leaned into him, glaring. It huffed out of its nostrils, sending warm, smelly air into Hiccup's face.

"U-uh" Hiccup gulped "Please don't eat me Mr..." Hiccup looked up and down the dragon as much as he could before realizing he had never seen this kind of dragon.

It was all black as far as he could tell. Smooth round black scales jutted out of its back like spikes flowing all the way down to its tail. It had huge leathery wings and small fleshy black ears. The dragon reminded him of a combination of a cat and a bat, two animals he had only read about on Berk.

"What are you?" Hiccup asked in fascination, his curiosity overshadowing his fear and pain.

The dragon only grunted, before opening its maw and rearing its head back, a purple glow streaming out of the back of its throat.

Hiccup recognized the glow instantly. Anyone on Berk would have recognized it. It was what kept his father up on long nights after Dragon raids, and what struck fear into the usually fearless Vikings that lived on Berk. It was a plasma blast, which meant the dragon was -

"A Nightfury" Hiccup's heart skipped a beat as he realized what came next.

Tears sprung into Hiccups eyes and he sobbed.

He was the first person to see a Nightfury, and now he was going to die.

Hiccups sobs grew louder and more painful as the purple glow intensified.

The Nightfury looked down at Hiccup, and for a second, through big teary eyes, Hiccup thought he saw a flash of guilt, maybe even pity flash through the dragons green eyes. Hiccup continued to stare into its green eyes. He couldn't help but see the similarities between the dragons eyes and his own.

A sudden calm flooded into Hiccups heart. He was gonna die. There was nothing he could do to stop that. Hiccup shot a look of resignment at the Nightfury before closing his eyes, and turning his head.

The Nightfury paused, and whimpered slightly.

The glow reached an all time high as the purple glow in its mouth filled the clearing with a blinding light. In a grand spectacle, the Nightfury snapped it mouth shut, before thrusting its face into Hiccups and unleashing an ear splitting roar into Hiccups face.

Hiccups eyes snapped open, and he watched as the Nightfury darted off. Spreading its wings as far as it could, the Nightfury looked back at Hiccup and glared. The beast clapped its wings together, rocketed to the skies, the sound of thunder echoing from the force and speed of the take-off.

Pained, and in shock, after minutes of just staring into the sky Hiccup forced himself up. His legs shaking so bad he could barely stand.

He stood there for a few seconds, trying to gain control of his legs.

Finally he dared to take a step.

The action proved to much for him, as the second his foot touched the ground, a dizziness flooded his mind and he fell to the ground, darkness enveloping his vision.

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 **An: I hope you guys enjoyed. If you could kindly leave a review, I would appreciate it. Feel free to ask questions, They really make my day.**


	2. Chapter 2

Hiccup groaned in annoyance as light flooded his vision and his senses slowly returned to him. He felt a gentle nudge to his chest, and for a second he thought he was back in his bed in his house.

The illusion was shattered as pain raced up his arm, and hot stinky breathe reached his nose.

Hiccup opened his eyes and immediately closed them.

"This is not happening." He said in disbelief. "The gods can't hate me this much"

Slowly he opened his eyes again, and whimpered. "Oh Thor"

Standing almost on top of him was a Deadly Nadder. It's blue and almost yellow scales stood out from the brown and green trees.

The Deadly Nadder stared at him curiously. It knew Hiccup was a baby Viking, a mere hatchling, but at the same time, any Viking no matter how big or small was dangerous.

It's eyes traveled down to Hiccups body and the beast cooed sadly, realizing that the hatchling was hurt, and most likely harmless.

Hiccup slowly started to sit up, hoping the dragon wouldn't react, but froze as the dragon squawked and moved away.

For some reason Hiccup found himself staring the Deadly Nadder in the eyes. He bent his knee up and used it to push himself to his feet. He stumbled forward and the Deadly Nadder roared, backing away to the edge of the clearing.

To Hiccups surprise, he recognized the same emotion he was feeling in the large dragons eyes. It was fear.

They were both scared. Scared of each other, and for some reason, that simple realization calmed the boy down greatly.

He had seen how fierce and powerful dragons were during dragon raids. All his life he had been told that the beast were just that, beast. They had no emotions, cared not for life, and never hesitated.

Hiccups thoughts turned towards the Nightfury he had barreled into the previous night. How it took its paw off of his broken arm, how it roared in his face and spared his life. The dragon had hesitated. It had even changed its mind.

Maybe dragons were just as afraid of Vikings as Vikings were afraid of dragons.

Hiccup took three deep breathes, before forcing himself to do the unthinkable.

He moved towards the dragon.

"Its alright" he all but whispered "I won't hurt you" He pointed to his left arm with his good hand "I couldn't even if if I wanted to"

The Deadly Nadder growled, and lowered its head to the ground slightly.

"shh" Hiccup held his hand out "I'm just as scared as you, as you are of me"

The Deadly Nadder stopped growling and looked at Hiccup with a renewed curiosity. Was this Viking Hatchling trying to befriend it?

The Nadder shook its head at its own question and narrowed its eyes.

Hiccup continued to shuffle towards it slowly, palm outstretched. He had meant for it to be a small defense in case the dragon attacked, but the closer he got to the beast the more he thought of the possibility of touching it.

"Why don't we-" Hicccup froze as the dragon took a few steps forward, closing the gap between them far faster than Hiccup was comfortable with.

The two stared at each other, Hiccup frozen in fear, the Nadder in curiosity.

"Why don't we make a deal" Hiccup finished in a whisper "I'm gonna close my eyes and look away, your gonna turn around and leave me alone"

The Deadly Nadder bobbed its head.

Goosebumps rose on Hiccups arm. "Did you just nod?" Hiccup asked shock.

The Deadly Nadder repeated the action.

"Can you understand me!" He yelled.

Again the dragon nodded.

"Ok" Hiccup said disbelief "Ok. Anyway" Hiccup searched the dragons eyes one last time before saying "Alright, I'm gonna do it"

Taking a deep breathe, Hiccup closed his eyes and looked away, his arm still outstretched in a rudimentary guard.

While the dragon had understood the little 'deal' the hatchling had proposed, it was silently taken back by the amount of trust the boy had just given it. This Viking was different, it decided.

The Deadly Nadder turned its back on the boy and began to walk to the edge of the clearing where the forest started up again. Just as it was about to enter the forest, the dragon stopped, and looked back at Hiccup.

He still had his hand outstretched, and he hadn't moved a muscle since. His left arm hanged limp at his side, and the boy was obviously in a lot of pain.

The beast growled to itself. Why did it care?

The longer the dragon stared at the boy, the worse it felt at the thought of leaving.

Suddenly, a thought popped into the beast head. Maybe if it showed kindness to the young Vikings, it wouldn't help kill dragons in the future.

The Deadly Nadder nodded to itself and stomped back to Hiccup.

The boy tensed as the vibrations from its feet hitting the ground got stronger the closer it got to him. The dragon stopped mere inches away from Hiicups palm. It looked the boy up and down for the final time, before closing its eyes, and gently placing its forehead against Hiccups palm.

Hiccups heart jumped to his throat and his eyes shot open. With wide, alarmed green eyes, the boy stared at the dragon, before gently petting the dragons scales in fascination.

The Deadly Nadder purred, not realizing how good the touch of a Vikings felt before now, and how much it would love the attention.

"Um, this is cool, but this wasn't part of the deal." The dragon rolled its eyes at Hiccup. "Not that I'm complaining! This is..."

Hiccup couldn't help but smile as he pet the scales softly. They were dry, but the feeling was so new and amazing so he loved it.

"This is incredible. I can't believe your letting me touch you"

Hiccup started scratching the dragon on the top of its head and earned a low purr of pleasure.

"This is amazing. Everything we know about you is wrong! Your not scary, or mindless, your-"

Hiccup stopped to gather his thoughts before saying "Your like me. Like us"

The dragon cooed before nudging Hiccup in the The chest with its head, and gesturing to his broken arm.

"What's wrong?"

The Deadly Nadder motioned to his left arm again, and then whimpered.

"Oh that. If your really worried about it, would you mind pointing me to the village? I'm lost, and well, you know"

The dragon backed away, considering its options, before lowering its body down to the ground.

With its head, it gestured to the boy and then its back.

"Your gonna walk me to the village?"

The dragon shook its head, and gestured again for Hiccup to climb on. The boy was a bit hesitant, but after a couple of seconds walked up to the bird like dragon and attempted to climb on.

The Deadly Nadder used its head to help push Hiccup onto its back, being careful not to stab him with one of its many spikes. It waited for Hiccup to get comfy, before roaring and flapping its wings, sending it into the air.

"Oh No!" Hiccup yelled as he panicked. He latched on to one of the dragons spikes fearful of falling off the beast as it began to fly through the air.

The Deadly Nadder roared, trying to get Hiccups attention, before nodding towards the forest below.

Following the dragons gaze, Hiccup gasped in awe.

The sun was directly over their heads, illuminating all of Berk. Trees dotted the landscape, looking smaller than Hiccups thumb from the altitude they flew from. He could see grand rivers flowing from the mountains and emptying into the ocean, some creating mini waterfalls as they fell off the edge of the island. The sun hit the water perfectly making it sparkle brilliant. He could see Berk clearly. The small red and brown houses flowing down the side of the island and ending at the harbor. He could even see his house where he and his father lived. He couldn't help but wonder where he was now.

"This is beautiful"

The Deadly Nadder squawked in agreement.

"You see this everyday?"

The dragon nodded. Hiccup noticed the ground getting closer as the dragon moved to descend.

He laughed "Aw, I kinda don't want this to end"

The dragon nodded in understanding but didn't slow down. It landed just on the outskirts of Berk, hidden by the thick trees that surrounded the village.

The dragon bent its body down and Hiccup jumped off. Hiccup patted the beast on its side before saying "I'm guessing this is goodbye"

The creature squawked and nuzzled Hiccup affectionately. It had enjoyed the young Vikings company more than it thought it would.

"Well thank you" Hiccup smiled "My names Hiccup, I promise I won't forget this"

With its tail, the The Deadly Nadder gestured to the sky.

"Sky?"

All of a sudden, the dragon whipped its tail and cut down a bush.

"Skycutter. Your names Skycutter. Are you a boy or?"

The dragon shook her head.

Hiccup nodded "girl then. Well Skycutter, do you think I'll ever see you again?"

The dragon didn't answer, instead, she nudged Hiccup softly towards the village and turned.

"Thank you" Hiccup repeated.

Skycutter nodded and quietly took off. Hiccup watched her go, before turning back to the village. He sighed deeply, relieved to be back home again, and walked into the village making sure to keep an eye out for Gobber or his Father.

Luckily he had been dropped off fairly close to the forge, and hurriedly walked there hoping no one would notice him or his condition before he got there.

He entered the forge unseen.

"Gobber?" He called out.

"Hiccup is that you?!" Her heard the man yell.

A tall Viking with blond hair and a beard hobbled into the shop with his peg leg and hook hand.

"Hiccup! We've been looking for you! Your fathers tearing the whole forest apart. I just got back from searching myself"

"Really?" Hiccup asked surprised.

"really. Woo. Looks like you had quite an adventure" Gobber gestured to his broken arm.

"Yeah. It was pretty wild" Hiccup laughed nervously.

"Come, we need to get you to Gothi. I don't think arms are supposed to bend like that"

Hiccup nodded and followed his mentor to Gothi. The old women helped set his broken arm in a splint and made a sling for the boy. After she was finished, she sent him home to rest.

* * *

"Hiccup!"

Hiccup groaned and slowly sat up in bed. It had been a couple of hours since he returned to the village, and he had slept through most of them, exhausted by the events of the past two days.

Looking through the open wooden window, he realized it was nighttime, and that it had taken longer to send word to his father about him being safe than he had thought.

His father, Stoick the Vast, barged into the room, and upon seeing Hiccup, grabbed the boy in an almost bone crushing hug, careful to mind the broken arm.

"Hiccup! Oh I'm so happy your safe son. Odin knows what I would've done if I had lost you too"

"I missed you too Dad" Hiccup coughed out, the air squeezed out of him.

Stoick let go of the poor boy and threw him a stern look.

" Hiccup" the warmth in his voice was gone "What happened?"

"Snoutlout-"

"Stop right there" he interrupted "Hiccup, we've talked about this. Your responsible for your own actions"

"But Dad!"

"No buts! Now tell me what happened, and I don't want to hear anything about Snotlout or anyone else."

Hiccup growled angrily "Forget it!" He shouted, surprising Stoick "You wouldn't believe me anyway"

He turned away and buried himself in his blankets as much as he could, and closed his eyes.

Stoick sighed, his gaze softening.

"I'm... I'm sorry son"

Hiccups eyes shot wide open. "You are?"

"Ai I am" He sighed "Go on. Tell me what Snotlout did this time"

Hiccup Bolted upright, excited his father was finally listening to him.

Hiccup recounted his grand tale about Snotlout forcing him into the woods and throwing him in front of the Monstrous Nightmare, and how he escaped the creatures grasp. As he neared the part about the Nightfury, he stopped. He had been saved and spared by dragons, the very creatures that attacked his village almost daily, and were believed to be mindless by everyone in the village. Would his father believe him?

"Hiccup"

The boy sighed and shook his head. Probably not.

"As I went to scale the log, I jumped off and fell farther then I thought. I fell and broke my arm, and got knocked out. When I woke up, I walked the rest of the way back home. We must have missed each other on the way"

Stoick sat on the side of Hiccups bed with a rather stoick expression as he contemplated his sons story.

After a while, he stood up and made his way out of the room.

"Where are you going?"

"Well, it looks like I'm gonna be having a chat with your cousin and his father"

Hiccup inwardly cheered, happy Snotlout was finally going to get the punishment he deserved.

Just as Stoick was going to leave, he stopped.

"Hiccup"

"Yes dad"

"Next time, I'll listen to you the first time. I promise"

Hiccup smiled "I love you dad"

"I love you too son. Good night"

Hiccup laid back down and closed his eyes. Once he heard the slam of the front door that signaled his father had left, he shuffled out of bed and grabbed a piece of charcoal and a blank leather book. Inside he drew a crude drawing of the Nightfury he had met, and set it on his desk.

"I'm gonna find you" Hiccup whispered into the night "and we're gonna be friends. I won't forget what you and Skycutter did for me"

He smiled down at his drawing and blew out the candles on his desk. Moving to his bed, he wrapped himself in blankets and gladly embraced the soft lull of sleep.

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 **An: At the end of each chapter will Be where I respond to reviews or answer questions left by review.**

 **Guest #2 I agree with you, Astrid has a huge sense of honor, but at the same time, she didn't really care much for Hiccup in the beginning of the first movie, and she, like Gobber and Stoick, is waiting for him to fight back. Something I don't see him doing, at least not at _this_ point in time.**

 **As always, thank you for reading and reviewing.**


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